Physical Activity and Sedentary Behaviors among Active College Students in Kuwait Relative to Gender Status

Objectives: To determine the prevalence of physical activity (PA), sedentary behaviors (SB) and sleep duration and the associations between those variables among Kuwaiti Physical Education (PE) College students. Methods: A total of 418 participants (220 females) were randomly selected from the Basic Education College in the Public Authority for Applied Education and Training in Kuwait. Body weight and height were measured, and body mass index (BMI) was calculated. A validated questionnaire was used to assess lifestyle behaviors. Results: Based on BMI classification, the prevalence of overweight or obesity among males (34.9%) was significantly higher than that of females (16.7%). However, the mean (SD) of body fat percentage using bioelectrical impedance analysis was 21.3 (9.0) for males and 32.3 (7.7) for females. The proportions of highly active (>1200 METs-min/week) males (85.9%) and females (64.3%) were significantly (p<0.005) different. The participants exceeding 3 hours of screen viewing time/day and insufficient sleep duration (<7 hours/night) were 76.8% and 65.1%, respectively, with no gender differences. Logistic regression, adjusted for confounders, showed that highly active PE students had a higher proportion of SB. However, neither sleep duration nor body fat percentage exhibited any significant difference relative to PA. Conclusions: Despite having high PA, Kuwaiti PE College students had a high prevalence of SB and insufficient sleep. Gender differences were found in PA but not in screen time or sleep duration. Efforts toward reducing SB and insufficient sleep among Kuwaiti PE College students are needed to reduce unhealthy lifestyle behaviors and promote health and well‑being

Prevalence and risk factors associated with nutrition-related noncommunicable diseases in the Eastern Mediterranean region

This paper reviews the current situation concerning nutrition-related noncommunicable diseases (N-NCDs) and the risk factors associated with these diseases in the Eastern Mediterranean region (EMR). A systematic literature review of studies and reports published between January 1, 1990 and September 15, 2011 was conducted using the PubMed and Google Scholar databases. Cardiovascular disease, type 2 diabetes, metabolic syndrome, obesity, cancer, and osteoporosis have become the main causes of morbidity and mortality, especially with progressive aging of the population. The estimated mortality rate due to cardiovascular disease and diabetes ranged from 179.8 to 765.2 per 100,000 population, with the highest rates in poor countries. The prevalence of metabolic syndrome was very high, ranging from 19% to 45%. The prevalence of overweight and obesity (body mass index ≥25 kg/m2) has reached an alarming level in most countries of the region, ranging from 25% to 82%, with a higher prevalence among women. The estimated mortality rate for cancer ranged from 61.9 to 151 per 100,000 population. Osteoporosis has become a critical problem, particularly among women. Several risk factors may be contributing to the high prevalence of N-NCDs in EMR, including nutrition transition, low intake of fruit and vegetables, demographic transition, urbanization, physical inactivity, hypertension, tobacco smoking, stunting of growth of preschool children, and lack of nutrition and health awareness. Intervention programs to prevent and control N-NCDs are urgently needed, with special focus on promotion of healthy eating and physical activity

The Psychological Foundations of Corporate Social Responsibility in Recreational Sport Organizations: An Investigation of Employee Functioning

The importance of corporate social responsibility (CSR) has been well documented in the mainstream management literature (e.g., Aguinis & Glavas, 2012; Turker, 2009). While CSR has been investigated in the sport management literature, it has been done almost exclusively from the macro-level perspective aiming to address questions about the implications of CSR for organizations and society (Babiak, 2010; Smith & Westerbeek, 2007). However, there has been little CSR-related research undertaken with regards to sport employees and the individual level of analysis (microlevel). As such, this study is guided by the general notion of the psychological foundations of CSR that explain how and why it affects organizational stakeholders such as employees (Aguinis & Glavas, 2013; Rupp & Mallory, 2015). The purpose of this study was to extend the micro-CSR literature to the recreational sport context by proposing and testing a theoretical model to better understand how employees psychologically experience CSR and their subsequent attitudes by adopting a positive organizational behavior framework. The model included psychological capital (PsyCap) as a mediator, as well as gratitude as a first-stage moderator on the association between CSR and PsyCap. This comprehensive model originated from the belief that when organization’s engage in CSR activities directed towards their employees, they perceive it, and their perceptions might affect their psychological development, which ultimately influences their attitudes towards their job and organization, respectively. This dissertation employed a cross-sectional quantitative research design and used an online survey for employees in recreational sport organizations across the United States (N = 705). The overall results indicated that employees’ perceptions of CSR were a strong antecedent in generating positive psychological capacities and positive employee outcomes. Additionally, the indirect effect of PsyCap was found to further explain how employees psychologically experience CSR. Support was found for all of the proposed relationships with one exception, gratitude was not found to have a significant interaction effect on CSR and PsyCap. The findings extend the sport management literature and offer empirical evidence about the powerful effect that favorable perceptions of CSR can have on employee functioning and positive attitudes. It also highlights the potential role that an organization’s socially responsible actions may have on the micro-level of the recreational sport work environment. Lastly, the results provide theoretical and practical contributions that should serve to inform future work in this emerging area of positive organizational behavior and sport employee psychology moving forward

Narratives and evidence: struggles over Mohamed Mahmoud

This research focused on the construction of competing narratives of the events of November 2011 in Mohamed Mahmoud Street, popularly named as the Mohamed Mahmoud events. Since the making, naming and categorization of the event has not been limited to the happenings of November 2011, my research thus asked how is an event made into a narrative, what are its temporal boundaries, and what evidence is used to construct it as an event and as a historical narrative that is recognized. Since each narrative/story is presented with its own evidence; I analyzed the production of different stories by different participants, how they construct the event, and how they use evidence to render their construction more credible, authoritative, and legitimate in relationship to others. The research addressed some key questions such as: who is telling what stories about what happened, in which way, using what kind of evidence. Additionally I ask how these different stories construct an event as a recognizable event and how the construction of this event by itself produces evidence

Obesity, Physical Activity and Sedentary Behavior Amongst British and Saudi Youth: A Cross-Cultural Study

This study explores differences in weight status, obesity and patterns of physical activity (PA) in relation to gender and age of youth from two culturally, environmentally and geographically diverse countries, the United Kingdom (UK) and Saudi Arabia (SA). A total of 2,290 males and females (15–17 years) volunteered to participate in this study. Participants completed a validated self-report questionnaire that contained 47 items relating to patterns of PA, sedentary activity and eating habits. The questionnaire allows the calculation of total energy expenditure in metabolic equivalent (MET-min) values per week. Significant differences in percentage of overweight/obese and levels of PA were evident between the youth from the two countries, with males being generally more physically active than females. Additionally, there were significant associations between Body Mass Index (BMI), PA and sedentary behaviors; the youth with higher BMI reported lower levels of PA and higher amounts of sedentary time. These findings highlight the diverse nature of lifestyle of youth living in different geographical areas of the world and the need for further research to explore the socio-cultural factors that impact on the prevalence of obesity and patterns of PA of youth in different populations

Lifestyle Habits : Diet, physical activity and sleep duration among Omani adolescents

Objectives: This study aimed to investigate the lifestyle habits—physical activity (PA), eating habits (EH), and sleep duration (SD)—of Omani adolescents, and to examine gender differences in such variables. Methods: 802 Omani adolescents (442 females and 360 males), aged 15‒18 years were randomly recruited. Anthropometric indices, PA level, and EH and SD were evaluated by the Arab Teenage Lifestyle questionnaire. A semi-quantitative food frequency questionnaire for dietary assessment was also administered. Results: The results showed that although the study subjects had a sedentary lifestyle (lack of PA, average of 6.7 hours sleep, and consumption of high calorie foods), they maintained a normal body mass (less than 25 Kg/m2). Males were more than twice as active as females. With respect to EH, there were few gender differences, except in dairy and meat consumption where 62.5% and 55.5% of males consumed more than 3 servings, respectively, compared to 18.78 % and 3.76% of females, respectively. In addition, waist/height ratio, height, reasons for being active, energy drinks, potato consumption, eating sweets, vigorous PA and breakfast EHs were statistically significant independent predictors for BMI, P <0.05 for both males and females. Conclusion: This study revealed a high prevalence of sedentary behaviors and a low level of physical activity, especially among females. Unhealthy dietary habits were also widely found among both genders. There is an urgent need for more research as well as a national policy promoting active living and healthy eating and discouraging sedentary behaviour among Omani adolescents